


A Shade in the Sun

by fob_lvr8



Category: Percy Jackson and the Olympians - Rick Riordan, The Heroes of Olympus - Rick Riordan
Genre: Eventual Smut, Fluff, M/M, Spoilers
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-01-29
Updated: 2016-01-29
Packaged: 2018-05-17 02:16:56
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 16,885
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/5850052
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/fob_lvr8/pseuds/fob_lvr8
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>After the events of Blood of Olympus, Will Solace has been harboring a crush on Nico di Angelo. When he notices Nico having terrible nightmares, he goes to comfort him. In doing so, their relationship develops slowly but surely.</p>
            </blockquote>





	A Shade in the Sun

**Author's Note:**

  * Inspired by [A Light in the Dark](https://archiveofourown.org/works/5792017) by [fob_lvr8](https://archiveofourown.org/users/fob_lvr8/pseuds/fob_lvr8). 



> **IMPORTANT: This work is essentially a mirror piece of one of my previous works entitled "A Light in the Dark". It follows the same plot line and uses the same dialogue. Really, the only difference is that this one is told from Will's perspective and the other is told from Nico's. I would recommend reading "A Light in the Dark" first, but you certainly don't have to; this is not a sequel, but rather a retelling.  
> As such, I'll give the same general disclaimers as I did on the other one. 1) I'm fairly new at fanfiction, and even newer at writing smut. Hopefully that isn't too obvious. 2)This piece is mostly fluff, but it does contain a bit of smut toward the end. I did try to keep it as tasteful as I could, though. 3) Further, as a straight, cisgender female, I don't really have any personal experience with the sexual encounters of homosexual dudes, but I did my best with it. 4) This piece is pretty long (and it's actually even slightly longer than "A Light in the Dark"), but I hope you will agree that it is worth it in the end. Please feel free to comment if you especially like or dislike something, and enjoy! :)

Will Solace, son of Apollo, was standing in one of the little curtained sections of Camp Half-Blood’s infirmary. He, somewhat distractedly, put away the various instruments he had been using and threw away his latex gloves. It was fairly late at night, but the infirmary was still packed full of injured campers, and Will had just now finished attending to the last one of the night; an Athena boy had gotten a bad cut on his arm during sword fighting practice a little earlier, and the wound had required stitches. Will was the head medic at the infirmary, and it always seemed that his job was never done. He didn’t usually mind it, though. He was excellent at what he did, and he absolutely loved doing it. Being a doctor had become his dearest ambition as soon as he had discovered his godly parentage and gift with healing.  


After both the Titan War and the war with Gaea, Will had stitched up, mended, or practically revived nearly every person in the camp. He knew most of them fairly personally because of that. He had even delivered Coach Hedge, the satyr, and his wife, Mellie’s baby. He hadn’t really wanted to, as his medical experience pretty exclusively dealt with injuries, not birthing, but he was the best medic the camp had to offer, and Coach Hedge had practically begged him to do it.  


It had been a very interesting experience, to say the least. Will was kind of glad he wasn’t attracted to women in that way, because he felt like that would have made the whole thing a lot more awkward than it already was. Usually, he was great at keeping a professional sort of distance and detachment between himself and his patients, but birthing a baby had been such a new experience for him, it would likely have been a little difficult to keep up his professionalism, had he been straight. It wasn’t that he felt he would have been attracted to Mellie necessarily, though she was pretty in her own way, just that, by sheer necessity, he had to be… well, up in her business, so-to-speak. As it was, Will had felt only the slight awkwardness that came with not knowing Mellie personally, but performing a very personal task on her. Despite that though, the birth had went pretty smoothly and afterward, both Coach Hedge and Mellie had thanked him profusely for helping her through it. Aside from that, there had only been one other time Will had struggled to keep his professional detachment while working in the infirmary, and that was when Nico di Angelo had stayed there for three days immediately following the war with Gaea.  


Will had been harboring a crush on the son of Hades for some time now. He had been instantly attracted to him even the first time he laid eyes on him. Of course, both of them had been very young at the time. Nico was just ten and Will eleven, and Nico was so caught up in his own issues at the time, they hadn’t really gotten to interact very much. Will had stuck to admiring Nico from afar whenever he saw him at camp. Then, during the war with Gaea, Will had saved Nico from almost dying after the boy had shadowed traveled himself into near non-existence. Nico had tried to insist he would be ok on his own, but Will knew better. He was an experienced enough medic (and gifted healer) by then to be able to sense how close someone was to dying. He had ordered Nico to stay in the infirmary for three days once the fighting was over so as to slowly bring him back to health. Though Will would never tell anyone, his reasons for the order had been about equal parts professional concern for Nico’s health, and guilty pleasure at an excuse to spend time with him.  


Will had made a point to attend to Nico with the utmost attention and care for the entire three days he had been there. He found himself on multiple occasions feeling slightly irritated when he had to attend to other campers on those days, but he quickly dismissed the feeling. It was his job, after all, and other people needed him too. Still, Will had felt inexplicably drawn to Nico, and having him so close was extremely difficult to resist. He ended up spending the majority of his time during those three days at the boy’s bedside, checking his vitals, bringing him food and water, or brushing stray locks of dark hair off his pale face as he slept. All of which were for purely medical reasons, of course. 

His crush on the boy had started to deepen into a serious infatuation about midway through Nico’s stay. Will couldn’t help himself. The son of Hades was just too gorgeous and too amazing for his own good. Though Nico had a tendency to be a bit sassy and moody much of the time, there had been a few instances when he had let his guard down and Will had noticed that he was actually an incredibly kind person. That just made Will like him even more. It didn’t help, either, that Will found it immensely amusing to push Nico (gently) out of his comfort zone. He was constantly doing little things here and there just to see the cute blush that rose in Nico’s pale cheeks and his brow furrow adorably into an irritated line. _No harm in coaxing him to lighten up a little_ , Will usually thought. _Somebody’s got to do it_. It also didn’t help that every time Nico’s skin brushed against his own, accident or not, cool tingles shot through Will, making his heart rate pick up.  


Will sighed as he finished cleaning up the section he was in. Instead of separate rooms, the camp’s infirmary consisted of one huge room divided into personal sections by long curtains hanging from the ceiling, much like the ones in a regular hospital. Each section had a cot and a little counter full of various medical supplies in it. Will had already sent the Athena boy back to his cabin with a small square of ambrosia, and was just about to leave the infirmary himself, when suddenly, he felt a slight tingle in the region of his stomach. He had recently come to realize that this tingle generally had something to do with Nico, though it wasn’t always limited to him. The first time he had felt it, a few weeks ago, he had been finishing up in the infirmary, much like tonight, and he had went out on a whim to check on Nico. He had found the boy extremely pale and shaking violently in his bed, seemingly suffering a terrible nightmare. The tingling had intensified slightly as Will observed Nico through the window of the Hades cabin, and he knew he had to do something. He felt mildly bad about waking Nico up in the middle of the night, but he hadn’t been able to bring himself to leave the boy in such distress.  


Will had tapped softly, but persistently on the window until Nico woke up and came over to see what was going on. There had been fear in his beautiful dark eyes at first, no doubt he thought Will was some kind of threat, but when he realized what was going on, his expression turned to surprise, then slight hopefulness, then a sort of guarded nonchalance that Nico often adopted whenever he was trying to pretend he was ok, all in quick succession. His dark hair was unruly as always, but it stuck up here and there in a way Will found absolutely adorable. Will’s heart had fluttered just at the sight of him. He flashed Nico a grin, and with some reluctance, the boy had opened the window carefully and asked Will what he was doing there. At that, Will had had to pause. _What was he doing there?_ Will thought. He mumbled something about “accidentally” walking by Nico’s cabin and hearing his distress. He hadn’t really wanted to explain about the weird tingle that seemed to alert him to Nico’s disquietude. If he did, Will was sure Nico would have thought he was a creepy stalker and likely never talked to him again. Thankfully, Nico’s cabin did happen to be on the way to his own from the infirmary, so it fit that he might be walking by, just by chance.  


Nico had seemed to buy Will’s story, though a blush had risen on his cute face, and Will had asked him, then, if he could come in to the cabin. He has been keen to avoid the patrol harpies that prowled the camp at night, looking for campers who were out of bed. Will usually got a pass from them whenever he left the infirmary that late, since he was head medic and all, but he was sure they wouldn’t be so lenient if they found him at Nico’s cabin and not his own. Nico had first tried to shake him off, the blush further reddening on his pale cheeks, but Will had insisted as politely as he could. The tingle in his stomach had seemed to be telling him Nico needed a bit of comfort just then, and he wasn’t about to let the boy suffer on his own for no reason. Grudgingly, Nico had finally agreed, and Will attempted to climb in through the window. It was certainly close enough to the ground, but Will had grown quite a bit in a fairly short time, and all the time he spent in archery lessons when he wasn’t on duty in the infirmary had really shaped up his muscles, so that now, he was both tall and fairly broad. The window, unfortunately, was a little small for his large frame. He had nearly broken the sill as he tumbled into Nico’s room, sprawling in a heap at the boy’s feet. _That was smooth_ , Will silently chided himself, embarrassed. He hoped Nico hadn’t notice the blush coloring his cheeks. Nico had just rolled his eyes a little and Will laughed it off.  


Will had gotten to his feet then, and they stood awkwardly for a minute, neither of them quite sure what to do. Will had wanted desperately to just wrap Nico up in a hug, but he was worried that might be overstepping his boundaries. He knew Nico generally hated people touching him, and he didn’t want to do anything that would make the boy seriously uncomfortable. A little joke or prod here and there was one thing, but forcing his proximity on the boy at such a vulnerable time felt like too much. Finally, Nico had walked toward the bed and sat down, gesturing for Will to do the same. He sat a careful distance away from him, so as not to make him too uncomfortable, but be there for him nonetheless. He asked Nico about the nightmare he had interrupted and slightly to his surprise, Nico told him about it. He had been expecting the boy to shut down and insist he was fine like he so often did, but that night seemed different. Nico had opened up a lot more than Will had thought he would. He was grateful for that. He hated when Nico tried to lock away all his feelings inside himself. It was likely to make the kid explode one day.  


Will had listened for a while, letting Nico do all the talking. Finally, the boy’s head had slumped, and he slid down on his pillow. He was so adorable when he slept Will couldn’t help staring at him for a few minutes. He had had a peaceful look about him then. All of the trouble and worry he carried around during the day seemed to melt off his face. That was the time his surname had seemed to really suit him. ‘di Angelo’; angel. Of course, Will thought he looked angelic nearly all the time, but the peacefulness about him just then complemented the image. When he was sure Nico was asleep, Will had carefully got up and tucked Nico back under his covers. He leaned down and whispered into Nico’s ear, “You’re safe now, sleep tight” and then carefully left the Hades cabin and went to his own.  


Tonight, Will trotted as silently as possible toward Nico’s cabin. He was suddenly glad he had remembered to put on some of his new cologne he had acquired recently. Not that that was relevant, of course. He felt the tingling in his gut intensifying, notifying him of Nico’s increasing distress. He hastened his pace a little, trying not to dwell on the thought of the boy lying terrified and alone in his bed. Will thought he could hear Nico screaming even from where he was. That made his heart rate pick up and a sense of dismay settle like shards of ice in his stomach. Finally, he reached the window and tapped on it like he always did. After that first night Will had gone to Nico’s cabin, he had felt the tingling more than a few times. He followed it to Nico’s cabin every time, and every time he found Nico in a state of tribulation. Each time, he tapped on the window until Nico woke up and let him in. Will felt that they were slowly starting to get more comfortable with each other. It had taken a while, but they had finally worked up to holding hands sometimes, or Nico would lay his head in Will lap, while the latter stroked his hair. Will loved the feeling of Nico’s hair on his fingertips; it was always so soft and smelled like pomegranate. The fact that Nico let Will touch him, even in a small way like that, made the older boy glow with happiness.  


Will was starting to wonder about kissing Nico. Of course, he had wanted to do it desperately ever since Nico had stayed in the infirmary, but it had always seemed like an unattainable fantasy for him. As much as he would love to see the shocked look on Nico’s face if he just walked up and did it, he himself felt a little nervous about it. Now, after the many nights Will had come to comfort Nico, he thought the two of them might be getting close enough to be able to try it. He didn’t want to push Nico’s boundaries too much, but he was dying to feel the boy’s lips on his own. He had a curious suspicion that they would be pleasantly cool; Nico’s skin generally was, and Will loved that about him. Anytime their skin touched, it felt like taking a cold drink of water on a hot day to Will. _Maybe tonight I’ll find out_ , Will thought, but he quickly dismissed the thought. He couldn’t think about kissing Nico just yet, not while he was in such distress anyway.  


Just then, Nico seemed to wake up. He was gasping and shuddering violently, making Will’s heart twist. He hated seeing Nico in such torment. He wasn’t sure if Nico had heard him tapping yet, as the boy simply laid there for a minute, not really moving. Will figured he was trying to recover from his dream. He didn’t blame him. If he had dreams about Tartarus like that, it would take him a minute to calm down too. Nico shifted around, seemingly trying to get comfortable again, but Will noticed he was shivering slightly. He started tapping on the window again, trying to get the boy’s attention. Finally, Nico seemed to notice the noise. He slipped out of his bed and pulled on the aviator jacket he always wore as he walked toward the window. Aside from the jacket, Will could see that he was wearing a black T-shirt with a skull on it and black athletic shorts that hung down past his knees. His clothes hung loosely off his small, lanky frame. Will had fantasized many times about what Nico’s pale chest would like if it wasn’t covered by a shirt. He tried not to think about that as Nico opened the window.  


The boy leaned out a little and rolled his eyes as he whispered slightly exasperatedly, “Hey Will. What are you doing? It’s the middle of the night, don’t you ever sleep?”  


Will smiled, feeling a little sheepish. It was a fair question, after all. Truthfully, Will had been feeling a little more tired than usual on the days after he went to Nico’s cabin, but he valued Nico’s comfort over his own, so he brushed it off. He could always catch up on sleep in his spare time.  


“I, well, I heard you, and I came to see what was wrong, of course” Will whispered back. He couldn’t help feeling a little pang of guilt in his chest as he said it. He hated lying to Nico, but he still couldn’t bring himself to tell him about the weird tingling he felt whenever Nico was upset. He smiled at him again, hoping his face didn’t betray him.  


Nico paused for a minute, seeming to think that over. Then his face reddened and he said, “You heard me?”  


“Well yes, you were screaming and thrashing around, and I was… um, in the neighborhood, and I figured you might need some company. Could I come in?” Will said. It was at least partly true. The cute blush on Nico’s cheeks made Will’s heart flutter and he smiled again. The boy was so cute, really it should be a crime.  


Will watched as conflicting emotions passed across Nico’s face. He seemed slightly agitated at first, but it quickly changed into a kind of resigned exasperation. Will thought he caught a slight gleam of hopefulness in Nico’s dark eyes. He wondered what that was about.  


“All right Solace, I’ll let you in,” Nico said rolling his eyes again. “But come in through the door will ya? I’m not sure the window could handle it if you tried to climb through again.”  


Will grinned and nodded, remembering the last time he tried to come in through the window. It had been just a few nights ago, and it had been easily as bad as the first night Will had come. He had made it most of the way through the window ok only to then catch his other foot on the sill, and he had had to reach out and grab the nearest thing he could find to balance himself. It had happened to be a particularly fragile lamp and it broke into pieces when he grabbed it. He had since fixed it in the arts and crafts studio and returned it to Nico, but thinking about the incident still made his cheeks heat up.  


Now, he walked around to the door of the Hades cabin, waiting for Nico to let him in. Will looked around a little nervously, hoping there weren’t any harpies close by. Thankfully, Nico opened the door before he saw any, and he stepped inside. He heard Nico shut the door softly and then followed his lead as he sat down on the bed.  


“I’m sorry to disturb you,” Will told him, “But I couldn’t just leave you like that. You seemed so upset.” He meant it. He still felt a little weird at invading Nico’s privacy like this, but it was impossible for Will to just leave him to fend for himself when the nightmares were that bad. No one should have to deal with something like that on their own.  


“It’s fine Solace. I was just dreaming. And it’s not like that’s ever stopped you before,” Nico said. He was using his forced nonchalant voice again. That told Will more than anything that it really wasn’t fine. He could tell the dream had really bothered Nico. He sensed that the boy was close to crying. A little hesitantly, Will reached over and touched Nico’s cheek. The emotion in Nico’s dark eyes was making it very difficult for Will to restrain himself. He wanted to be able to erase all of Nico’s pain and worry with just a touch of his hand. Nico’s cheek was very cool, and it made Will’s fingertips tingle.  


“Are you ok?” Will asked him gently. He supposed it was kind of a stupid question. He already knew Nico wasn’t all right, but he wasn’t sure exactly what else to say.  


“Yes,” Nico said, a little defensively. Then he sighed and said, “No, I don’t know.” Will just looked at him. He knew if Nico wanted to elaborate, he would.  


“It’s just— more nightmares and stuff. You know, regular demigod troubles,” he said. His façade of mock nonchalance seemed to be cracking a little. Will instinctively moved a little closer to him. His senses were screaming at him to just hug the boy and get it over with, but Will knew he had to tread carefully if he didn’t want Nico to get too uncomfortable. If that happened, he would likely just shut down and become sullen and hostile, and then all of Will’s efforts would be for naught.  


“I understand,” Will told him. “You’ve been through so much. I can’t even imagine how awful it must be.” Another true statement. Nico was one of the strongest people he knew. The boy had been to Tartarus and back, lost his sister, and on top of that, Will wasn’t sure he was quite comfortable with his own sexuality yet. That would be enough to weigh on anybody.  


Will had been thrilled, if slightly jealous, to hear about Nico having had a crush on Percy. He hadn’t been sure before whether Nico was actually into boys or not, but once he revealed his old crush on the son of Poseidon, Will nearly jumped for joy. Especially to hear that the crush was over. His own feelings aside, however, Will could tell that Nico still seemed a bit uncomfortable with himself. That was understandable considering Nico had spent most of his life in a time period that would never have accepted him the way he is. That made Will a little sad. Nico was so perfect it was hard for him to imagine anyone being that horrible to him, especially for something he couldn’t control. 

Back in the present, Will put his musings aside and finally held his arms out, inviting Nico in. The boy must have been pretty upset because he didn’t hesitate to close the distance and bury his nose in Will’s chest.  


“You have no idea,” Nico mumbled against his shirt. The pleasant coolness of his breath made goosebumps rise over Will’s skin. The smell of pomegranate coming from Nico’s soft hair was a bit distracting. As Nico cried softly into Will’s chest, the older boy did his best to concentrate all of his comforting and healing power to send in waves over the boy in his arms. Will held him with one arm, and rested his cheek against the top of Nico’s head, twirling a piece of his hair between the fingers of his free hand.  


“It’s ok,” he said gently. “I’ve got you, you’re safe.” He poured as much warmth and security into his voice as he could. Nico’s shoulders were shaking softly as he cried, nearly breaking Will’s heart. He would do anything he could to make this boy happy.  


Nico’s voice broke slightly as he said, “I know.”  


Will held him for a while. He loved the feeling of having Nico in his arms. He hadn’t realized he was feeling hot until Nico’s coolness seemed to wash over him like he had jumped into a swimming pool in the summertime. It was so pleasant Will had to catch himself from sighing with relief. He tried to focus on what Nico needed right then. His instincts kicked in and he began to hum one of the ancient Greek hymns he’d learned a while ago. He had read that some of the more famous healers of Apollo could cure people just by singing. He hadn’t really believed it at first, but he made himself learn the hymns anyway. Then, on the first night Nico had stayed in the infirmary, he had tried it out. A few seconds after he had started the song, Nico’s color starting improving dramatically and he seemed substantially more… solid. The underworld magic he used tended to make him start dissolving into shadows if he did it too much. Will had been so surprised that the singing had worked that he almost stopped. He caught himself just in time and continued to the end of it. Nico had then looked noticeably better. Will took that as a good sign.  


Now, Will hummed the most comforting hymn he could remember. He thought he could sense Nico’s emotions leveling back out slowly, and pretty soon, the boy had stopped crying. He didn’t pull away from Will, though. Eventually, Will’s attraction to him started creeping back into the foreground of his thoughts. The boy’s body was so close to his own it was driving him crazy, and all he needed to do was gently tilt Nico’s head up a little and press his lips onto the boy’s. He didn’t want to be too forward with it though, if Nico was still feeling down from his dream. Gently, Will touched his hand under Nico’s chin, looking into his beautiful deep brown eyes. He brushed his thumb under one of them, catching a small tear still lingering there.  


“Are you feeling better?” Will asked.  


“Yes,” Nico said in a small voice. “But please don’t leave yet,” he added. Will noticed a look of longing lingering in his eyes. It made his heart do a little tap dance in his chest.  


He laughed softly and said, “I won’t, Nico. Not at least until I’m sure you’re actually better.” He would be just fine staying here with him forever, actually. Not that he was going to say that, of course.  


“Oh,” Nico said, looking slightly hurt. “So soon?”  


It was so cute Will had to laugh again. Then a sudden idea came to him, and he said it before he could lose his nerve. “I could always stay tonight, if you want.”  


Nico’s dark eyebrows arched in surprise and his lips formed into a little O. He said, “Oh… umm…” and paused for a minute.  


Will’s heart jumped to his throat. _Oh no_ , he thought. _Now I’ve done it_. He said quickly, “Or not, you know, that’s ok too,” hoping the disappointment in his voice wasn’t too obvious. He worked to compose his face into a polite expression, trying to guard himself against the hurt that was sure to wash over him when Nico rejected him. _What was I thinking?_ he thought, smacking himself mentally.  


Then Nico said, “No, please. I’d—I’d like it if you stayed.” His cheeks had a very adorable pink tint on them.  


“Ok,” Will said, a grin spreading across his face. “If that’s what you want.” Relief was quickly washing through him, then excitement soon after. He was staying the night with Nico di Angelo. He had been dreaming of something like this longer than he could remember. The younger boy laid his head on Will’s shoulder, and Will began to recant the latest infirmary gossip, just to make conversation. With so many campers there, there had been more than a few amusing incidents lately. After a couple minutes, Will felt like he was rambling, but Nico didn’t seem to mind. Will tried not to focus on how close his body was. After a while, he ran out of news to share and fell silent. Nico still hadn’t moved, and Will was starting to think about kissing him again. He was itching to know if his lips felt as good as the rest of him did. Finally, he couldn’t take it anymore and he angled his body slightly inwards, taking Nico’s face gently in his hands. His skin was deliciously cool.  


“Nico,” he said, softly. “Can I kiss you?” His heart was absolutely pounding in his chest.  


“Yes,” Nico breathed, a look of eagerness in his dark eyes.  


Will smiled just slightly and very carefully leaned down to touch his lips onto Nico’s. He had been wrong. They weren’t pleasantly cool like he’d expected. They were better. Will drank in the refreshing coldness of Nico’s soft lips and felt like he was taking a huge gulp of water he hadn’t known he’d needed. He felt Nico put his arms around him, and he kept his hands on the sides of the boy’s face, kissing him with a tenderness that he felt surging through his whole body. His mind went wonderfully blank of anything except the feel of the boy pressed closely against him. When he felt Nico’s tongue touching his, he was afraid he might faint. His heart was pounding almost painfully against his ribs. If he hadn’t been sweet on Nico before, there was no way he couldn’t be now. 

Nico fumbled with the hem of his shirt and Will felt a cool hand touch the skin of his back. He shivered and pushed his own hand into Nico’s soft hair, keeping the other on his cheek. Then, he felt Nico kissing him with a little more urgency and he didn’t know if he would be able to take much more. Nico’s lips were the best thing Will had ever felt in all his life, he was sure. Finally, he pulled back a little, trying to remind himself to breathe. He kept his forehead on Nico’s and didn’t open his eyes. He was still holding the boy’s face between his hands.  


Then he said, “How’s that for a real kiss?” 

He had been thinking about all the times he had fantasized about kissing Nico, and he immediately mentally smacked himself for saying what he was thinking. The boy didn’t need to know about his fantasies.  


Nico, however, seemed to be thinking something else. He said, “Much better than the first time,” in a soft voice that was ridiculously attractive.  


Suddenly, Will remembered that they had technically kissed before. He had caught Nico one night during capture the flag a few weeks back, standing in the shadow of a tree, trying to ambush enemy players. They had been on separate teams, and Will had been determined to catch Nico off guard. He had had a hunch that the boy would be hiding somewhere near his team’s flag instead of playing offense, and Will crept through the woods until he caught sight of Nico’s back. He silently padded over to him and leaned casually against a nearby tree, stepping on a twig purposefully to get Nico’s attention. He hadn’t really thought about anything past that moment consciously, but he realized he already had a plan half-formed for what he would do next. It solidified as Nico turned toward him, surprise coloring his cute face. 

Before Nico could react, Will chirped brightly “Hey babe. Don't I get a kiss for luck?”  


It had exactly the effect he was hoping for.  


“Wh-what?” Nico spluttered, looking shocked. A bright crimson blush spread across his cheeks.  


Will had then dashed over to Nico, pecked him straight on the lips, and stole away behind him, snatching the flag and racing back to his team’s area as fast as he could. Then, he had made a point to act like nothing had happened every time Nico was near him for the next few days after that. It was probably the best push-Nico-out-of-his-comfort-zone move Will had ever pulled. Despite that, though, he had nearly forgotten about it until just now. It wasn’t that he hadn’t liked it; calling Nico babe, pecking him on the lips, and then leaving him stunned had certainly been fun. It was just that the kiss had been so short, he didn’t really consider it a real one. Now, Will dropped his hands and laughed earnestly, remembering the incident.  


Then he looked at Nico and said, “You mean in the woods that night of capture the flag?” And before Nico could reply, he answered his own question, “Yes, I suppose it was better than that. Much better.”  


Then a glint of his gold wristwatch caught his eye and he looked down at it. It was really late, he realized. Or early? Will wasn’t sure exactly what this hour was considered, but he knew they should probably go to bed soon, lest they both be completely drained the next day. He glanced sideways at Nico.  


“It’s getting pretty late,” he said. “We should probably try to get some sleep, eh?”  


“I guess,” Nico replied in a glum sort of voice. 

A flash of disappointment shone in his eyes. Will hoped that was just because their kiss had been so wonderful. He couldn’t be sure with Nico, though. Will was about to ask where he should sleep, when Nico suddenly took off his jacket and crawled to one side of the bed, clearly leaving Will space to lay down. Will got up and walked over to the door, slipping off his shoes quickly before laying down next to Nico. Gods, even his bed was pleasantly cool. Will promptly wrapped his arms around Nico’s body putting his nose in his sweet, pomegranate scented hair, and realizing a second too late that Nico may not like that. He felt the boy tense slightly for a second, and then relax. He took that to mean the gesture was ok.  


“You smell good,” Will murmured next to his ear. He had always loved the way Nico smelled.  


“Umm, thanks,” Nico muttered.  


Will laid there for a moment feeling Nico’s chest expand and contract. There wasn’t any better way he would have liked to spend this night. He silently thanked the gods for his good fortune as he felt Nico’s breathing deepen.  


Then he whispered, “You’re safe now, sleep tight” into the boy’s soft hair as he closed his eyes and drifted to sleep.  


****************  


Two days later, Will was walking toward the rec room of the big house. They had a mandatory counselor meeting today, and as Will was Apollo’s head counselor, he needed to be there. He found the meetings mildly interesting. He was in charge of a fair amount of campers and activities, so he took his job pretty seriously. He brought a pen and paper with him to each one, jotting down notes about what the other counselors said.  


Today, Will’s thoughts were lost in daydreams about Nico. He had resigned himself to asking the boy if he could come over tonight, because he didn’t think he could stand another night away from him. He wouldn’t tell him that, though, of course. He figured the meeting would be a perfect time to ask. Nico was the head counselor for the Hades cabin, which was unsurprising as he was the only one in it, so he would be at the meeting too. Will’s heart fluttered just thinking about seeing his cute face, his dark eyes cool and intense as he listened to the other campers talk.  


Will stepped up to the door of the rec room and pulled it open, walking over to take his seat where he always did, between Piper and Percy from the Aphrodite and Poseidon cabins. Piper gave him a curious look as he sat down, and he desperately hoped she couldn’t tell what, or rather who, he was thinking about. He ignored her and pulled out his pen and paper from his bag. Nico wasn’t there yet, but it was still a bit early. Suddenly, the door opened, and a few campers walked in, in quick succession: first were the Stoll brothers, who were the co-counselors of the Hermes cabin; then Katie Gardner from Demeter; then Clarisse La Rue from Ares; then Annabeth, Percy’s girlfriend from Athena, and finally, Will’s heart did a tumble as he saw him, Nico di Angelo, looking ridiculously attractive, as always, in a pair of black skinny jeans, a black T-shirt, and his aviator jacket, his dark hair sticking up in an unruly and incredibly sexy way. It would have struck Will as odd that Nico would wear a jacket in the middle of the summertime, but he knew personally that Nico was always plenty cool, no matter what he was wearing. He shivered a little, remembering the boy’s cool lips on his own. Will watched him sit down almost directly across from him and tried to catch his eye, but Nico didn’t seem to be paying attention. He seemed as lost in thought as Will had felt practically all morning.  


Just then, Chiron walked, well trotted seeing as his lower half was a horse, into the room. He began the meeting the way he pretty much always did; he summed up the general state of the camp and welcomed them all in. Then he started going down the line asking all of the counselors if their cabin had any specific concerns or requests, or if they had any issues with the activities they ran. Will made notes idly for a while, only half-heartedly paying attention to what everyone was saying. The other half of his mind was still on Nico. Then, Chiron got to Will and he put in his piece. It wasn’t much; Austin had asked him to get a few extra pillows for the cabin, the archery station needed a few dozen more arrows, and the infirmary could use some syringes, but that was about it. He informed the rest of the group about it and then let his attention wane as Chiron turned to the next person. Will watched Nico for a while. For the most part, he looked bored out of his mind, twisting the silver skull ring he always wore around and around on his finger, but occasionally, a slight blush would creep onto his cheeks and Will had to wonder what he was thinking about.  


Just then, Pollux, from the Dionysus cabin, had just finished giving his part of the discussion when Chiron turned to Nico.  


He said, “You don’t have anything do you, Nico?” in a friendly tone. Nico was only in charge of the funeral rites at camp, and as no one had died as of late, it seemed very unlikely that he would have anything to share.  


Nico looked up like someone had just fired a gun very close to his face. “Uh, what?” he said. His eyes shot to Will’s and Will felt himself smirking. It was very obvious whatever Nico had been thinking about was definitely not a part of the meeting.  


Clarisse was the first one to respond. She snapped, “He asked if you had anything to report,” quite rudely, in Will’s opinion. Then she added, “It’d be nice if you could pay attention long enough to know when it’s your turn.” The annoyance in her voice was almost palpable.  


Nico stammered, ““Uh, sorry, I—”  


Will decided it was probably a good time to intervene. He cut across Nico before he could finish his thought, saying, “I’m sure Nico has a lot on his mind at the moment, Clarisse.” He flashed Nico a sly smile for just a second, a mischievous playfulness running through him. Will certainly had a lot on his mind right now, that was for sure. He guessed that Nico might be feeling the same way. Out of the corner of his eye, he thought he caught Piper looking at him with her eyes narrowed, but he ignored it. Piper didn’t need to know anything about him and Nico just yet. Personally, he wouldn’t have cared that much, but he knew Nico would be pretty upset about it. He was a very personal guy.  


Then he shot one of his diffusing glances at Clarisse. Will had discovered not that long ago that he sort of had that power. He could diffuse negative emotions pretty easily just by touching or looking at someone. It came in very handy whenever tensions started running high.  


Clarisse just rolled her eyes and said, “Whatever” but Will thought he sensed her annoyance ebbing. 

“Do you have anything to share or not?” she asked, looking at Nico.  


“Umm, nope. No requests or complaints,” Nico said quickly. He looked relieved that the attention was moving away from him. Gods he was so cute when he was shy, Will thought.  


“Very well,” Chiron said. “Then if no one has anything else…” his voice trailed off and he looked around at all of the counselors. No one said anything. “All right, meeting adjourned,” he finished after a second.  


Immediately, everyone started gathering their things and stood up to leave. Will purposefully took a while putting his pen and paper into his bag, hoping Nico would sense what he was doing and hang back too. He wanted to ask him about coming over tonight. And maybe kiss his cool lips while he was at it, too, but he tried not to think about that right then. Nico seemed to catch on and hung back as everyone else slowly filed out of the room. Soon, he and Nico were the only ones left. Nico was looking down at his hands, twisting his silver skull ring like he had done during the meeting. Will carefully shouldered his bag and stepped toward him.  


“Nico,” he said, seeming to pull the boy out of a reverie.  


“Yeah?” he asked carefully. There was a nervous sort of excitement filling his dark eyes. He couldn’t have looked more attractive if he tried, Will thought.  


Will walked closer to him and hesitated a little. He wasn’t sure how to ask this without coming off the wrong way. “Would it, um, would it be all right if I came by tonight?” he managed. _Oh brilliant, Solace_ , he thought. _Just skip the niceties and go straight for the kill. Smooth_.  


“Yes,” Nico replied simply. Then he said, “I’d like that.” He sounded very sure of himself, which caught Will a little by surprise. Then, his elation at Nico’s answer hit him, and he smiled, leaning down toward the boy so that their faces were only a slight bit apart. He wanted very badly to kiss him now.  


“It’s been very difficult to keep you off my mind lately,” Will admitted in a low voice. That was certainly the truth. He had been thinking of little else since he had stayed the night with Nico. He was already missing the feel of his small, cool body pressed against his own.  


Nico laughed lightly at that. It was probably Will’s most favorite sound in the whole world, he decided. Nico laughed so infrequently it was a shock every time Will heard it. Like he had died and suddenly found himself standing the fields of Elysium, forgetting nearly everything else that came before that moment.  


“I know the feeling,” Nico said. Will’s heart skipped around erratically and he grinned, leaning his face down the rest of the way to touch Nico’s cool lips with his own. He once again had the feeling that he had submerged himself in a refreshing pool of water he’d had no idea he needed so badly. He held Nico’s cheek in his hand while the younger boy wrapped his arms around him. As they kissed, Will felt like there was nothing else in the world but them. They could have been anywhere, any time, and Will wouldn’t have cared. The feel of Nico’s lips made his body tingle pleasurably. Somewhere in the back of his mind he knew he was supposed to be in the infirmary right now. Austin would be very upset with him if he didn’t relieve him soon. He kissed Nico for a few more minutes, his heart beating fast and hard in his chest. Then he reluctantly pulled back.  


“I’ve got to get back to the infirmary,” Will said softly. He really didn’t want to. He wanted to stay here and kiss Nico all day and not care about anything else. Somewhere inside him though, he knew he was needed. He couldn’t neglect all of the campers in the infirmary for his own selfish desires, however tempting they may be. “I’ll see you tonight?” he finally asked Nico.  


“Yes,” the boy said, in a slightly breathless voice. He looked like he wasn’t quite done either. That did nothing to help Will’s resolve.  


“Good,” Will said with a small smile and a nod. Then he moved past Nico and outside into the sunlight, feeling like he had left his heart back in the room with the son of Hades.  


Later that day, Will was stitching up another bad sword cut in the infirmary, absorbed in his work, when he suddenly heard Piper’s voice speaking to him close by. He had been so busy today, and distracted with his thoughts about Nico, that he had apparently not noticed her come in until she was standing just a few feet from him. He looked over at her. She and Katie Gardner, from Demeter, were standing idly at the opening to the section Will was working in.  


“Hey Will. Can we talk to you for a minute?” Piper said. 

She had a look in her eye that made Will think he already knew what this was about. It made him a little nervous. If she charmspoke him into talking about Nico, he’d probably end up spilling way more than he wanted to. Katie just looked slightly bored. Possibly, Piper had dragged her here against her own interest. He wondered if they had some business together and Piper just made a detour. That seemed like something Piper would do.  


Will sighed. “Can it wait? I’m kind of busy here,” he said, indicating the kid he was stitching up.  


“Oh sure. Finish those stitches and meet us outside,” Piper said with a smile and a wink. 

Will groaned internally. That didn’t leave him with much of a choice. He carefully finished the stitches, cleaned up his supplies, and sent the kid on his way. Then he threw away his gloves, washed his hands, and went outside to meet the two girls. They were standing a little way from the door, talking to each other in quiet voices. Immediately, Will narrowed his eyes in suspicion. He was sure he wasn’t going to like this.  


“What’s up?” he said when he reached the girls. They had instantly stopped talking the moment they noticed Will walking toward them.  


Piper smiled knowingly at him. “Nothing. We just wanted to ask you about what happened at the meeting earlier,” she said. 

By ‘we’ Will assumed Piper really meant ‘she’ and that she had somehow roped Katie into coming along with her, for gods only knew what reason. Katie’s face more or less confirmed that. She still looked pretty bored. Will didn’t detect much charmspeak in Piper’s voice, but that didn’t necessarily mean anything. She could be very subtle with it when she wanted to.  


Will blinked, feigning surprise. He figured the best way to handle this was to play dumb. “What are you talking about?” he asked. He hoped his eyes didn’t give him away.  


“Oh, please, like you don’t know,” Piper said, still smiling. “You and Nico were practically ogling at each other the entire time, and then you flash him a smile talking about how he’s ‘got a lot on his mind’. What exactly would Nico have on his mind right now, Will?”  


Damn, had she noticed all of that?  


“Umm, I, I don’t know, Piper, I’ve got to get, umm there tonigh—, uh I’ve got to get back to the infirmary,” Will said, flustered. _Oh, no_ , he thought.  


Piper’s multicolored eyes gleamed. This had apparently been exactly what she had been hoping for. “So you’re going there tonight, huh?” she said.  


_Oh, no, oh no no no_. Nico was going to kill him. “Umm, what? I, I didn’t say that,” Will said. It was very unconvincing even to him.  


Piper rolled her eyes. “Whatever, lover boy,” she said. “Well, I just wanted to tell you that I approve. But you better treat him like a king. That boy’s been through too much for anyone not to.” Then she turned to Katie. “Can you do the thing?”  


“Of course,” Katie said. 

She still sounded bored. She waved her hand and a bundle of red roses appeared in it. She thrust the roses into Will’s chest. 

“Can we go now?” she asked Piper.  


“Yes, but one last thing,” Piper said. Then she turned to Will again. She leaned into the roses and whispered something. Immediately, they started to give off a smell that reminded Will of the pomegranate scent of Nico’s soft hair and the coolness of his body.  


“Give those to him,” Piper said. Then she looped her arm through Katie’s and they trudged off in the direction of the big house.  


Will stared down at the roses he was holding. Piper’s charmspeak really was a cool gift. He wished he could make something smell like Nico just by speaking to it. He thought about what she had said. _Treat him like a king_. _How could I not?_ Will thought. As far as he was concerned, Nico di Angelo already was a king. He still couldn’t believe the boy would even give such a lowly peasant like himself the time of day. Not that he wasn’t grateful for it, however. Will quickly shook off his musings and walked back into the infirmary. Maybe it wasn’t so bad that Piper and Katie had cornered him. Bringing Nico flowers tonight was something he should have thought of himself. He smacked himself mentally for being so thick. He set the roses in the little cubby at the entrance of the infirmary where he generally kept his stuff while on duty, and set back to work with the injured campers.  


A little bit after eleven o’clock that night, Will shut the door of the infirmary behind him. It felt like it had been forever since Piper and Katie had showed up earlier, and Will was ready to get on with his time with Nico. He had the roses tucked under his arm, but a sudden thought came to him. It seemed very unlikely that Nico would have something to put the roses in, once Will gave them to him. He had been starting to walk toward the Hades cabin, but he quickly changed direction and went over to the arts and crafts studio. He stepped inside and picked out a suitable vase off of one of the shelves, and then resumed his path toward Nico’s cabin. He hoped Nico hadn’t been waiting too long. He hadn’t said a time earlier, but he was afraid Nico might already be asleep by now. He started to walk a little faster. Finally he reached the door and knocked.  


He heard Nico’s voice call, “Who is it?”  


“It’s me you idiot. Who else would it be?” Will said, amused. Really, did the kid have that many nighttime visitors? Will tried not to think about that.  


Just then, Nico pulled open the door. The son of Hades was looking absolutely beautiful in a I-didn’t-even-try kind of way. It looked like he _had_ tried to comb out his dark hair though, but it didn’t seem to make it any less unruly. Will thought it was perfect. Nico wore his usual black athletic shorts and black T-shirt that hung loosely off his thin body. His small, pale feet were bare, standing on the carpet of his cabin. Will felt his heart speeding up already. Nico’s face had lit up when he first opened the door, but then his eyes fell on the roses and he stopped dead.  


“Hey babe,” Will said, unable to refrain from the endearment. He held the flowers out toward Nico. “These are for you.” Nico didn’t say anything, but continued to stare at the flowers. 

“And I figured you probably didn’t have anything to put them in, so I brought you this too,” Will added quickly, showing him the vase.  


Nico still didn’t say anything. He slowly took both the flowers and the vase from Will, and headed over to his desk to put them down. Will quietly followed him into the cabin, turning to shut the door behind him.  


Then Nico turned on Will. “You brought me flowers,” he said. The accusation in his voice almost made Will laugh. Nico was so cute when he was irritated. Will hastened to explain himself.  


“Well, yes,” he said, smiling sheepishly, “I sort of accidentally ran into Katie and Piper earlier, and they grilled me into spilling that I was going to see someone special tonight.” It was mostly true, at least. Nico’s face scrunched into a scowl. “But don’t worry, I didn’t tell them who it was,” Will said quickly. He didn’t want Nico to be too mad at the girls. He also didn’t want him to know that he hadn’t needed to tell them who it was. “Anyway, they insisted that I bring those with me,” Will said, indicating the flowers. He shrugged, sort of apologetically, but he didn’t really mean it. Piper had insisted Will treat Nico like a king, and bringing him flowers was just one way Will intended to do that. The boy might as well get used to it now.  


Nico looked down at his toes. “Um thanks,” he said after a minute in a cross sort of voice. Then he seemed to realize that it sounded a bit harsh, because he said in a little softer tone a second later, “They’re—they’re really nice. You really shouldn’t have, though.”  


Will was honestly curious about that. “And why not?” he asked Nico.  


“Because, well…” Nico started. He paused for a minute, seeming to decide how to say what he was thinking. 

“Because I don’t have anything to give you,” he finished finally in a very quiet voice. He looked embarrassed and a little sad. It took a moment for his words to sink into Will’s brain. Then the older boy crossed the room in a few quick strides and wrapped Nico into his arms. How could he have gotten it so wrong?  


“Nico,” Will said after a minute.  


“Mmm,” Nico mumbled into Will’s chest. His cool breath tickled, even through his shirt.  


“You don’t have to get me anything. The best present I could ever think to have is just your company,” Will said gently. How could Nico give him anything else? Just letting Will be around him was enough for the older boy, and anything else would just tip the scales. Nico didn’t say anything to that, but didn't pull away to argue either. After a few minutes, he turned his eyes up to Will’s. They were such a gorgeous shade of brown, Will almost had trouble concentrating.  


“Will you stay again tonight?” Nico asked in a small voice. Will had been hoping he would say that. He grinned, elation filling his heart.  


“Of course,” he said. “If that’s what you want.” Will was pretty sure he could never refuse Nico something he wanted. Honestly, if the boy asked him to jump off a bridge, he probably would. Well ok, maybe not, seeing as Nico was likely to say something like that the moment Will tried to do something nice for him, but still, the sentiment was the same.  


“It is,” Nico said. 

Then he stretched up on his tiptoes to kiss Will. He was so short Will had to lean down a little to fully close the distance between them, but he didn’t mind. He loved Nico’s small stature. It made him feel like he could protect him better. Nico’s lips were cool and soft, and Will kissed him with an earnest longing. After a little bit, he felt Nico’s hands slip inside his shirt, traveling slowly over his back. Will had to struggle not to cry out. It felt as if that area had been slowly burning in the sun and only now did it reach the coolness of the shade. As they continued to kiss, a heady passion began slowly taking over inside Will’s body. He moved his lips to the side of Nico’s mouth, not entirely satisfied with just that. He kept his lips on Nico’s skin as he moved toward his neck. He felt the boy shiver slightly as his lips touched to the hollow of it. Nico’s hands slide back down to Will's waist, but he kept them under his shirt still. Will began to move his lips back to Nico’s mouth, but the boy suddenly pulled on his shirt, clearly trying to get him to take it off. Will smiled and obliged, yanking it off with one hand, in one quick motion. Nico’s dark eyes appraised him. They seemed to reflect the same heady passion that Will was feeling. It was undeniably attractive.  


“You’re so beautiful,” Nico said in somewhat breathless voice.  


“Thanks,” Will laughed softly. “But you should see yourself,” he said. He doubted he looked that great after working in the infirmary all day, but hearing Nico say it made his heart soar. And really, Nico couldn’t see the way he looked to Will at that moment. Will was sure there was nothing more beautiful than that.   


“Oh, shut up, Solace” Nico said and he pressed his lips back onto Will's. 

Will couldn’t argue with that. Nico’s lips were so distracting, he lost all thought of the conversation after that. Nico’s cool hands roamed over Will’s now bare chest, making him feel like he’d just stepped into a cool shower after having practiced archery out in the sun all day. Which, was a feeling he knew well, since he had done it many times. Nico’s lips were deliciously intoxicating. He could feel passion and arousal building in him again, and after a few minutes he stepped backward toward the bed without even thinking about it, pulling Nico by the hands onto his lap. He pulled Nico’s aviator jacket off his shoulders, and then quickly pulled off his shirt too. Nico’s chest was a dazzling shade of ivory, though his skin still held an olive tone Will guessed came from the Italian side of his family. Though the boy was fairly skinny, he wasn’t lacking too much in the muscle department. It was the most beautiful and alluring sight Will had ever seen.  


“Talk about beautiful” he said appreciatively, trailing his eyes over Nico’s body. 

He had no idea how Nico could have said that about him, when he himself looked this good. Nico didn’t say anything but he smiled a little, which was enough for Will. They kissed again for a while. Will’s body was feeling pleasantly cool and tingly. Between Nico’s lips on his and the boy’s position on his lap, he was starting to feel slightly light-headed. Then Nico pushed gently on his shoulders, telling him silently to lay back and Will did so. He didn’t think he could handle having Nico lay on top of him just yet though, so he turned over so that both of them were lying on their sides, facing each other. He propped himself up on his elbow, looking at Nico and tracing his fingers on the soft skin of Nico’s forearm. His stunning dark eyes were gleaming in his pale face. Just then, Will noticed the moonlight reflecting off the long, jagged white scars on Nico’s upper arm. He traced one with his finger, frowning and furrowing his brow slightly.  


“I am sorry I couldn’t prevent the scarring,” he said. 

He was still very upset with himself that he hadn’t been able fix that completely. He had tried everything he could think of, including singing whenever Nico was asleep (he was too embarrassed to do that while he was awake), but it still wasn’t enough to keep the wounds from turning into those long, jagged, lines etched in Nico’s pale skin. Will didn’t find him any less attractive because of the scars. He just hated it that Nico had had to suffer. It made him feel like the most worthless healer there was.  


Nico waved him off. “Don’t worry about it,” he said dismissively. 

That was easier said than done. Especially now, when the moonlight was making the lines stick out more than usual.  


“Still, I wish I could have been there when it happened so I could have helped you more. No offense to Reyna of course, but if I could have stitched you up right after those wolves attacked, you may not have gotten any scars at all,” Will said.  


He cursed, silently, for the millionth time that he _hadn’t_ been there when the attack happened. He could have helped so much more if he hadn’t been getting nearly day-old wounds that were hurriedly stitched and bandaged to work with. Truthfully, Reyna hadn’t done that bad of a job, but werewolf scratches were very tricky. It would have been complicated even for Will, the camp’s best medic and healer extraordinaire, to take care of properly.  


Will leaned slowly over and touched his lips onto one of the jagged lines. He wished his kisses could make them go away. He felt Nico shiver slightly under his touch. “I’m sorry,” he said as he kissed a scar. “I’m sorry, I’m sorry, I’m sorry.” He kissed another one each time he said it.  


Will could feel Nico rolling his eyes. “Will,” he said. “Really, it’s ok. You did your best. And honestly, if it weren’t for you, I probably wouldn’t be alive.”  


Will had to smile at that. “Well now that is true,” he said. A feeling of playfulness was filling him now. “I shudder to think what would have happened if I hadn’t made you stay in the infirmary for those three days. Good thing I’m such a great doctor.”  


“Oh shut up, Solace,” Nico said, but then he laughed his beautiful laugh. It took Will by surprise, as always, making him feel quite giddy. He loved it when he got Nico to laugh.  


Then Will had a sudden thought. He wasn’t sure how Nico would react, but he couldn’t stop himself from asking. “Nico?” he said in a shy voice.  


“What?” Nico asked. Will heard suspicion already dripping in his tone. _Uh, oh_. He thought. But the idea was so appealing he couldn’t help himself.  


“I was just wondering…” he stopped, trying to figure out the best way to ask the question. “I was just wondering if maybe I could call you my boyfriend now,” he said. 

He waited, with bated breath for Nico’s answer. He hoped to all the gods that Nico would be ok with it. Will couldn’t think of anything he’d like better than to be able to call the adorable, sweet son of Hades his boyfriend. He didn’t think it was entirely unreasonable. They had kissed plenty of times now, he thought, and they were now sleeping together (in the literal sense) for the second night. That had to be the kind of activity that signified that they were in a relationship, right?  


Will thought he sensed some of Nico’s hesitation and he quickly came up with a slight amendment. “We don’t have to tell anyone,” he said, after a minute. “It could just be between us.” He played with Nico’s fingers idly, not noticing entirely what he was doing.  


Nico sighed. “I don’t know, Solace,” he said. “Can you give me some time to think about it?”  


“Sure, babe. Take all the time you need,” Will said. 

It wasn’t a no, and that was all Will cared about. He would keep his word and not tell anyone. He just wanted to be able to consider Nico his boyfriend for himself. Just thinking about it made Will’s heart fill with emotion. His whole body felt light and airy and he looked at Nico, no his _boyfriend_ , endearingly. In that moment, Will swore he loved him. He considered telling Nico that, but he held back. The feeling was fairly new to him, and he didn’t think he was ready to admit it out loud. Plus, an admission like that was sure to send Nico running for the hills. He didn’t want to do that so soon after Nico had (sort of) agreed to be his boyfriend. It would kind of ruin the whole thing.  


“It’s getting late,” Nico suddenly said. “We should sleep.” There was a slightly odd tone to his voice that Will didn’t quite understand. He brushed it off, though. It probably wasn’t anything he needed to worry about.  


“Whatever you say,” Will said, wrapping his arms around the boy when he turned over. He fell asleep easily, feeling Nico’s pleasantly cool body against his own and the smell of pomegranate filling his nose.  


The next morning, seemingly from far away, Will felt Nico pull himself carefully out of his arms and lean over. The movement pulled him toward waking, though he didn’t feel like he was quite ready to yet.  


“Mmm morning,” Will muttered sleepily to Nico, opening his eyes to look at him. Gods he was cute in the morning. His unruly dark hair was sticking up every which way again, and the pale skin of his face was slightly puffy from sleep still. Will was normally a morning person, but he slept so well when he was with Nico, it was hard for him to pull himself out of it.  


“Morning,” Nico said. 

He got up quickly and started pulling on his clothes. Will wasn’t sure what the rush was. It still felt fairly early and he was very content lying in Nico’s bed, though it wasn’t as good without him in it too, Will had to admit. 

“You’ve got to get up and get out of here before someone sees you,” Nico said. There was a bit nervousness glinting in his dark eyes. He looked like the kid whose parents just caught him doing something he wasn’t supposed to. It was adorable.  


“Well, dang you want rid of me that fast, eh?” Will said playfully. He knew Nico was right, but he couldn’t resist playing with him just a little.  


“Will…” Nico huffed, “that’s not fair.”  


“I know, I know,” Will said, yawning and stretching out his arms. Reluctantly, he got up and pulled on his shirt and slipped on his shoes. He walked to the door, but hesitated, not really wanting to go.  


He turned back to Nico for a second. “Can I at least get a kiss goodbye?” he asked, grinning at the boy. He wanted one last taste of his cool lips before he had to be without them again.  


Nico rolled his eyes and sighed a little dramatically, but he walked over anyway. Will leaned down and touched his lips onto Nico’s. They were so addictive, Will knew he could have stayed right there for the rest of the day. Nico pulled back fairly quickly though, still looking a little nervous.  


“Ok, now go before you get us both in trouble,” Nico said.  


Will grinned at him. “Bye, boyfriend,” he said and he headed out toward his own cabin.  


****************  


Two weeks after the time Will had stayed in Nico’s cabin for the first time, the son of Apollo was in the archery station, trying to teach some other campers about the basics of shooting. It was one of the few days he had off from the infirmary, but since he was in charge of archery too, he wasn't completely free. He was currently attempting to instruct some of the newer campers on how to properly grip a bow, but he was having a bit of a hard time concentrating that day. His mind was filled with memories of the date he and Nico had most recently been on.  


It had been one of the best days of Will’s life. He had gotten up very early, packed a picnic basket full of some of the healthier things Nico liked to eat (which admittedly wasn’t much) and pulled the son of Hades out of his bed and over to Will’s favorite spot in the strawberry fields. Will had been going there for a while by himself, before he and Nico had gotten together, to watch the sun rise over the camp. It was one of his favorite things to do, and he had been wanting to share it with Nico for some time.  


That day, he had finally decided he would do it, and he patiently awoke the griping and complaining son of Hades out of his sleepy, early morning stupor. Nico had been very reluctant to leave his bed. He wasn’t much of a morning person, except when he thought the two of them might get caught sleeping in the same cabin, of course. He tended to move pretty quickly on those days, even if it was super early. Will had insisted this time though, so they had finally made their way over to the spot just in time. The sunrise had been especially beautiful that day, with long streaks of orange and pink shooting across a cloudless sky. Once Nico was fully awake, he had seemed to enjoy himself pretty well too. They had talked for a while, holding hands and eating the food Will had packed in the basket. He loved how easy it was to talk with Nico. For as head-over-heels as he was for the boy, he always found it easy to just converse with him. Will liked that.  


Finally, Will had looked over at Nico and noticed a small bit of his raspberry-jam-mixed-with-cream-cheese that he had been eating on a piece of toast, smudged on his mouth. The colors of the sky were reflecting in his dark eyes and his pale skin was almost shining in the early morning sunlight. It struck Will, then, how truly beautiful the boy was, and he had suddenly gotten an idea. He stared at Nico for a few minutes with the jam still smudged on his mouth and felt a certain playfulness course through him.  


“What?” Nico had asked, narrowing his eyes as a blush colored his cheeks. He had apparently not noticed the jam smudge yet.  


Will didn’t answer him, but instead simply leaned over slowly to lick the jam quite sensually off of Nico’s cool lips. It tasted even better on his skin than it had on the bread. Nico stared at him for a minute, his cheeks going an even brighter red and his dark eyes boring into Will’s. For a second, Will was afraid he had seriously offended Nico, until the younger boy suddenly tackled him and pinned him to the ground. Will didn’t fight back, but he wasn’t entirely sure it would have done much good anyway; Nico was a lot stronger than he looked. The boy pushed his lips onto Will’s in a furious, and incredibly sexy way.  


Will was stunned for a few seconds, but quickly got over it as they kissed, responding to Nico’s sudden outburst with a passion of his own. After a minute, Nico’s hand slipped under Will's shirt, the coolness only increasing the passionate fervor beginning to burn within Will. He pushed his own hand a little roughly into Nico’s dark hair, tangling his fingers in it. Then he wrapped his other arm around the boy’s back, pulling him in closer to his body. Nico’s position on top of him was all-together one of the most seductively appealing things Will had ever experienced. They kissed with an intensity that Will had never felt before. His heart was beating so wildly he thought it might hammer straight out of his chest. He wasn’t sure how it was possible to feel a sensation of refreshing coolness and such a hot, burning passion simultaneously, but it was certainly happening. Finally, after what seemed like a long time, Nico pulled back and rolled off him, both of them panting on their backs in the grass. Will wasn’t really sure what just happened, but he definitely liked it. After a minute, he propped himself up on his elbow and looked at Nico.  


“Well,” he said. “That was… interesting.” He wasn’t sure interesting was quite the right word for it. He thought something more like… hot? enticing? irresistibly alluring? would probably work better.  


“Yeah,” Nico said. His beautiful dark eyes were still looking at the sky. Will couldn’t tell what he was thinking. It was a little… disconcerting.  


“Look, we should, um, probably get back,” Nico mumbled after a minute, still not looking at Will. “If we’re gone too long, it’ll look suspicious,” he said. 

Will tried not to feel hurt by that. They were, like, together now after all. He didn’t see that it would be that big of a deal if people knew they were spending time together. He tried to honor Nico’s wishes, though.  


“Ok, boyfriend,” he said, trying to break some of the serious that seemed to have settled over them since they had pulled apart. He got up and started packing away the things they had brought with them. Nico helped, but Will noticed he still wouldn’t meet his eyes. He was starting to feel like he had maybe crossed a line somehow. He wasn’t sure exactly how, seeing as Nico had done the tackling him and all, but he was a little worried nonetheless.  


After that, neither of them had mentioned the date. Nico had since seemed to have gotten over whatever it was that had bothered him that day, and Will had stayed with him in his cabin another time since then too (really, he was staying almost every other night, now), and Nico seemed to be ok. He still kissed Will and let him put his arms around him as they slept, so Will figured his worry was probably over nothing. Still, he couldn’t seem to get the memory of the way Nico had kissed him out of his mind. It was just so… hot. Back in the present, Will's memories were suddenly interrupted by the voice of one of his cabin mates, standing beside him.  


“Umm, Will?”  


“Wh-what?” Will said intelligibly. He hadn’t realized he had spaced out so badly. He wondered how long the kid had been trying to get his attention. He felt his cheeks heat up a little. The group of new campers were looking at him curiously.  


“You’re, uh, you’re holding it wrong,” the other Apollo boy told him.  


“Huh?” Will looked down at the bow in his hands. His grip was indeed off. “Oh, sorry,” he said as he readjusted the bow. Then he shook himself mentally, trying to focus.  


“You ok, man?” the kid asked him, arching an eyebrow.  


“Yeah, yeah, I’m fine,” Will said, waving him off, and he went back to instructing the group of campers.  


After the class was over, Will took his time packing away his stuff. He still had a few hours until he was going to Nico’s, and he wasn’t really sure what to do with himself. He decided he should probably shower, seeing as archery had made him pretty sweaty, and he thought about taking a small nap. If he was going to be up for a while tonight hanging with Nico, it’d probably be a good idea. He headed to the showers, washing himself on autopilot, his mind still full of Nico. All of a sudden, an idea came to him, and he knew exactly what he was going to do before he went to Nico’s cabin that night. He was pretty sure he still had the thing somewhere in his drawer in the Apollo cabin, he mused. He hadn’t used it in a very long time, but he was sure it still worked. Probably. He finished showering and dressed quickly, combing through his curly hair but leaving it wet. He hoped one of the Hephaestus kids would be free to help him at this point in the day. They were usually pretty busy in the forges most of the time, but he was willing to trade chore or shower schedules with them to work it out.  


A few hours later, Will quietly shut the door to his cabin, being careful not to wake anyone up. He had what he needed tucked safely in his pocket. As it turned out, Nyssa, from the Hephaestus cabin, had been able to rig it to do exactly what Will wanted in all of about five minutes. And it did still work just fine. The fact that Will hadn’t used the thing in practically years hadn’t seemed to matter. That had left him with plenty time to take a quick nap before he went to see Nico, and Will was grateful. Between his shifts at the infirmary, trying to teach archery lessons, and spending time with Nico, Will found himself a bit more tired than usual lately. Not that he really minded, of course.  


Carefully, he made his way over to the Hades cabin. He stepped up to the door and knocked softly, but loud enough for Nico to hear. He didn’t have to wait long. Nico pulled open the door, wearing his usual black skinny jeans, T-shirt, and aviator jacket, looking like a dark-haired, pale-skinned angel. Will’s heart filled with happiness just looking at him, and he thought he saw the emotion reflected on Nico’s face.  


“Hey babe,” Will said. “Mind if I come in?” Nico didn’t even flinch at Will’s calling him ‘babe’ anymore.  


He shrugged and said, “Sure,” a smile playing at his lips.  


Will stepped into the room and sat down on Nico’s bed while the younger boy shut the door carefully. When he came and sat down next to him, Will took his hand. Even after the crazy amount of time they’d been spending together, Nico’s cool touch still felt like a much needed refreshment after a long day in the sun. Will glanced at Nico for a minute, then pulled out the device he had put in his pocket.  


“This is an iPod,” he said slowly. 

He tried not to say it in a condescending way, but he knew Nico would have no idea what it was. He had been born in the 1930’s after all, and then spent much of the remaining seventy years in the Lotus Hotel and Casino where nothing and no one ever aged. That generally meant he had no idea about anything technological. Will generally found it kind of cute, but also kind of exasperating at times.  


In the present, Nico looked like he was trying not to scowl. “Ok. What does it do?” he asked.  


Will had to smile at that. Really, his ignorance was just adorable. “Well, it does lots of things,” he said. “But right now, I want to do something. I’m going to use it to play music. I got one of the Hephaestus kids to get it to play Pandora without using a cell signal and despite the fact that the camp doesn’t have Wi-Fi,” he said. He knew Nico wouldn’t understand most of that, but he felt like it was necessary to explain, nonetheless.  


“Here, put this in your ear,” Will said, handing him the ‘right’ side of the headphones that were plugged into the device. 

Nico obliged and Will put the other one in his own ear, turning on the iPod and flicking through the pages of apps until he found Pandora. He liked that app especially because he could pick one song and then it would automatically keep playing ones like it. The music began to play, and Will heard a woman’s rich voice singing in Italian, with a lovely piano accompaniment in the background. Of course, he had no idea what the lyrics meant, but he knew Nico would, and it sounded romantic and sweet enough to do the job. Carefully, Will stood up and gently pulled Nico to his feet, too. He took the boy’s arms and wrapped them around his neck, putting his own around Nico’s waist. He had never slow danced with anyone before, but he knew the general idea. He carefully began to guide Nico in a slow circle, letting his movements sync to the music and losing himself within the romance of the moment. Nico laid his head against Will’s chest, and the older boy rested his cheek against Nico’s soft, pomegranate scented hair.  


The songs played on, and Will kept guiding Nico gently around and around. A part of him wished he could understand the lyrics, but the other part was happy enough just to be holding Nico in his arms, swaying to the music. Finally, after they had danced to a good number of songs, he cupped his hand under Nico’s chin and tilted the boy’s head up, slowly bringing his face down to touch Nico’s lips with his own. He poured all of the love and happiness he felt for the boy into his kiss. Nico pushed his cool hand into Will’s hair, resting the other on his chest. Then, Will put one hand on the side of the boy’s face, slipping the other under his shirt so that he touched the small of his back. The feel of Nico’s lips on his own and closeness of his body clouded all other thoughts from Will’s mind.  


They kissed passionately for a while. The same sort of spark that Will had felt that day in the strawberry field began to spark within him. He was once again struck by the odd, but pleasant contrast between the coolness of Nico’s body and heat of ecstasy in his heart. He felt Nico begin to kiss him a sort of earnest intensity. He moved his hand from Nico’s cheek and pushed it gently under his shirt, feeling the muscles of the boy’s back and exploring his body a little hungrily. He felt Nico pulling on his shirt and he helped him pull it off over his head. He then took off Nico’s jacket and pulled his shirt off too. He ran his hands down Nico’s thin, but muscular chest, brushing his fingertips lightly over his nipples, feeling the goosebumps that arose on the boy’s skin. Nico grabbed Will’s face with both hands and pulled it back down to his own, kissing him with urgency again. Both of them seemed to move together as one as they backed up to the bed. Nico laid on his back and pulled Will on top of him. Will felt the boy wrap his legs around his lower half and then run his cool hands down the sides of his body. It was so enticing Will had to struggle not to moan.  


Softly, he touched his lips to the space on Nico’s pale neck just below his earlobe, trailing his mouth slowly downward toward the nape and slipping in his tongue in softly here and there. He felt Nico shiver pleasurably. He grazed Nico’s earlobe softly with his teeth, and then slowly moved back to his neck.  


He felt Nico turn his head slightly and then breathe in Will’s ear, “Take me.” 

A spark like a bolt of lightning shot down Will’s spine, and he pulled back to look at Nico. He hadn’t been expecting that. Making out was one thing, going all the way was another entirely.  


“Nico...” he said, “Are you sure? I don't want to do anything you're not comfortable with.” It was true. He hadn’t expected Nico, of all people, to up for something like that. Not that he himself wasn’t, of course. He was pretty sure he might explode at any minute from the level of arousal within him, but he also felt a little… nervous.  


“I'm sure,” Nico said as he traced his cool fingers across Will’s collar bone. That made it immensely difficult to concentrate. Still, he hesitated. He was a little apprehensive at the thought of going all the way with Nico. Slow dancing was not the only thing he had no experience with.  


Nico quickly backtracked, obviously misinterpreting Will’s hesitation as rejection. “I mean if you don't want to, that's totally ok too,” he said. He dropped his hands from Will’s skin and Will could already see the hurt in his eyes.  


Oh gods, that wasn’t what he meant. “Oh, Nico, no, I want to. Gods, do I want to,” Will said, caressing Nico cheek. “You are so... So just, well hot, and amazing, and sweet, and I want you so bad I nearly can't stand it,” he breathed, “It's just, I've never really done anything like that before and I just don't want...” he broke off, unsure of how to say what he was thinking. “I just don't want to disappoint you,” he finally finished quietly. That was also a true statement. He didn’t really have any qualms about doing it in general, he was just worried he wouldn’t be any good at it, and that it would create a whole lot of awkwardness between himself and Nico. He wanted to be able to please the boy in whatever way he desired, and he was afraid he wouldn’t be able to.  


Nico looked visibly relieved. Had he really thought Will didn’t want him?  


“Then we'll just have to teach each other,” he said. That was enough for Will. The confidence in Nico’s voice reassured him. Will couldn't help the grin that spread across his lips. At least they would be figuring this out together, he thought.  


“All right, boyfriend,” he said, and he began to kiss Nico again. The minutes passed by as they moved their lips together almost rhythmically, in an intensely passionate sort of way. Will held Nico’s face in his hands and he felt the younger boy put his arms around him, his cool fingers touching Will’s shoulders. Even just the feel of his skin was shooting tingles through Will’s body.  


“Will,” Nico murmured quietly against his lips after a minute.  


“Yes?” he asked breathlessly.  


“Just be easy on me, ok?”  


Will had to a laugh a little at that. As if Nico wasn’t the one making Will feel like he might pass out and explode into tiny pieces all at once. “Oh I will babe,” he said, “but the same to you.” 

He looked down at Nico laying under him, feeling a loving tenderness mixed with hot lust in his heart. He noticed Nico’s dark eyes seemed to be blazing with love and arousal, too. That just about did it for Will. He traced his fingers across Nico’s cool chest, then down over his stomach, and finally coming to rest just about the line of his pants. If he was going to do this, he was going to do it right. He put his lips to the boy’s neck again, but now he started to move his mouth slowly downward. He kissed the pale skin of Nico's chest, pausing for just a second, to lightly run his tongue over one of Nico’s nipples. He heard the boy let out a soft moan, arousing him further still. Carefully, Will kept going, trailing kisses slowly toward the top of Nico’s pants. When he got to the area just above them, he softly put his lips on Nico’s hip bone, slipping in his tongue a little. He moved slowly toward the middle of Nico’s body, and he could tell it was creating the effect he wanted. He heard Nico whimper softly and felt his cool fingers lace into his hair. It was ridiculously arousing.  


Carefully, he began to undo the button on Nico’s pants, glancing up slightly to see the boy’s cheeks covered by a dark blush. Will noticed he seemed a little tense, so he moved slowly, giving Nico time to back out or say no if he wanted to. He didn’t want to do anything Nico wasn’t comfortable with. Nico just closed his eyes and Will noticed his body begin relax a little. He gently pulled off Nico's pants, and discarded them softly on the floor. The sight of Nico’s bare body filled Will with a desire so hot he thought he might catch fire. He put one of his hands on the lower part of Nico's belly, and then trailed his lips across Nico's inner thigh. He touched the tip of his tongue softly onto Nico, feeling his body respond positively. Slowly, he slipped his mouth over him, moving up and down methodically, absorbed in pleasuring Nico.  


The boy gasped slightly and grabbed a nearby pillow, burying his face in it. Will took that to mean he was enjoying it. He continued, trying to pay attention to what Nico seemed to like best. After a little bit, Will thought he felt Nico looking down at him, so he flicked his eyes up to meet the boy’s.  


"Ohh...!" Nico nearly screamed. 

He bit down on his knuckle, seemingly trying to keep himself quiet. Will had to smile a little bit. He was really enjoying this. He kept going for a little while until, finally, Nico didn’t seem to be able to take anymore. He pulled on Will’s arms a little roughly and started kissing him, but he didn’t pause. He pushed on Will’s shoulder so that the older boy laid onto his back, and Nico promptly scrambled on top of him. Will found it intensely erotic. Nico kept his lips on Will’s, and he ran his cool hand down Will’s body. When he put his lips to Will’s neck and simultaneously slipped his hand inside his pants. Will felt like he had been electrocuted in the most pleasurable way possible. The coolness of Nico’s hand down there was extremely appealing. He moaned softly, reveling in the feeling of Nico’s touch. Then the boy deftly undid the button and zipper on Will’s pants, wasting no time in pulling them off and tossing them unconcernedly on the floor behind him. Nico’s dark eyebrows raised slightly like he was enjoying the view and Will felt his cheeks heat up a little bit. He wasn't used to be so fully on display like that. Thankfully, the ardent passion boiling inside him he was making it difficult to focus on anything but Nico.  


Nico began kissing his body in manner similar to what he himself had done to him. His mouth trailed over Will’s chest, and then his stomach. Everywhere Nico’s lips touched his skin was tingling intensely. When Nico reached Will’s groin, he didn’t hesitate, slipping his lips over him quickly, but carefully. _This is it_ , Will thought. _I’m dead. I’ve died, and now I’m in Elysium_. He felt his body shudder slightly and he let out a moan.  


Will's lips seemed to move of their own accord. “Nico…” he whispered, more to himself than anything. “Oh, gods…” 

He was honestly surprised he could even form coherent thoughts. If he had thought Nico’s cool hand was pleasurable earlier, it was nothing compared to his mouth. It didn’t help that Nico was very intuitive too. He seemed to be able to tap into the wants and needs of Will’s body without any help from Will himself. Nico continued for a while, driving Will nearly insane. Then, slowly, he came to a stop. That was probably good. Will was starting to worry he wouldn’t be able to last much longer. Nico moved so that he was sitting directly on top of Will. He put his lips on the lower part of Will’s neck and then slowly trailed them upward toward his ear.  


“Take me, now,” Nico breathed. 

His cool breath tickled, and he ran his tongue lightly over the top of Will’s ear. That was all Will needed to hear. He quickly flipped Nico over and got up onto his knees so that Nico was facing the bed and Will was behind him. He put one hand on Nico’s hip and carefully lubricated himself with saliva with the other. He had never done this before, but he was pretty sure it wouldn’t work very well without some lubrication. Very slowly and carefully, he entered Nico.  


It was the most amazing thing Will had ever felt, including all of the pleasure that had occurred just prior. He heard Nico gasp, and he was afraid he might have hurt him, and he almost stopped. Then, he felt Nico’s body relaxing a little, and he heard the boy begin to moan softly, so he continued. He tried to be very gentle and careful with his movements, wanting Nico to feel as good as he did. He pushed his hips methodically against Nico, and he leaned over him a little, reaching one hand around to touch him. That seemed to help him relax even more. Will was starting to lose coherent thought, consumed with lust and passion, but he was very careful not to be too rough on Nico. He trailed his hand over the boy’s back as he pushed his hips, grabbing his shoulder or touching his hair, before moving back down to his hip. The sight of himself inside Nico was nearly enough to push him over the edge, but he wanted to make sure Nico got there too. He kept gently thrusting with his hips and touching Nico for a while. Finally, he noticed the boy begin to climax, and felt himself doing the same. He pulled out as he did, moaning Nico’s name softly, and collapsing on top of him.  


It took a couple of minutes for him to even be able to think again. Both of them laid in heap for a little while, out of breath and exhausted, but blissful with pleasure. Will hoped that it had been as good for Nico as it had for him. Eventually, he rolled off of Nico, grabbing for his shirt from the floor to wipe himself off. Then he picked up his boxers and slipped them back on. He snatched up Nico’s underwear and handed them, along with his shirt, over to the boy so that he could do the same. Once Nico was done, Will laid back down on the bed beside him. They moved so that Nico was laying on Will’s chest and the older boy put his arm around his shoulders, feeling Nico’s cool fingers tracing lightly on his skin.  


After a few minutes Nico breathed, "That was… amazing." His voice was softer somehow than it usually was.  


"Yes," Will replied, "It was." This had been the best night of his life. He knew for sure now, that he was in love with Nico di Angelo. As he thought it, he decided was the right time to tell him so, too.  


“Nico,” he whispered softly after a few moments.  


“Yes?” the boy asked. He still sounded a little breathless.  


Will touched his fingers under Nico’s chin and tilted the boy’s head up so that he could look into his beautiful dark eyes. “I, I think I might love you,” he said quietly. It was so much harder to say out loud.  


Nico didn’t say anything for a moment. Then he said, “You love me,” in a sort of dazed voice, and looking down. Will was instantly afraid he had offended him.  


“I mean, I’m sorry,” he backtracked. He wasn’t sure exactly what to say. Here he was putting his feelings out there, and now Nico was about to tell him he didn’t love him back. Feeling a little panicked, Will started rambling, “I hope that’s not too forward. I know we haven’t really been together that long, I guess, but you are the most amazing person I have ever met, Nico, and I just—” he broke off when Nico put a cool finger to his lips.  


“I think I love you too, Will,” he said simply. His dark eyes were burning with sincerity and love of his own. Relief washed quickly over Will, and then complete euphoria.  


“You do?” he asked, still not quite believing it. Nico di Angelo loved him back. How in the world he had gotten this lucky, he had no idea. He wasn’t about to argue with it though.  


“Yes I do,” Nico answered. 

He looked like he was trying not to smile. That was enough for Will. The feeling of euphoria settled over him as Nico laid his head back down on Will's chest. He smelled the lovely pomegranate scent coming from Nico’s hair, and he was sure there was no better smell in the world. He laid there for a little while, feeling like the world could end at any second and he would die the happiest man on the planet. He noticed Nico’s breathing begin to deepen. For old times’ sake, he whispered softly, "You're safe now, sleep tight" and kissed Nico's soft hair. Then he drifted slowly into a beautiful dreamless sleep.  


****************  


Will awoke slowly to the feel of Nico’s cool fingers brushing a stray lock of his curly hair out of his face and his lips touching Will’s.  


"Mm hey babe," he mumbled sleepily, not opening his eyes. He was feeling warm and light, and he wasn’t sure he was quite ready to wake up yet. He still wasn’t quite used to that yet. Normally he loved waking up to the morning sunshine.  


"Hey," Nico said softly. 

His sleepy voice was very adorable, and Will, almost instinctively, stretched out his arms and put them around Nico's body, pulling him in closer to him and resting his chin lightly on top of the younger boy's head. He could stay like that forever. After a few minutes though, Will felt Nico lightly tracing the contours of his mouth with one finger. It felt very pleasant.  


"Will," the boy said softly.  


"Mmm?" he said, keeping his eyes closed still.  


"We should tell the rest of the camp," Nico said.  


Will opened his eyes quickly, pulling out of his sleepy stupor abruptly. "What?" he asked. He wasn’t entirely sure he had heard Nico right.  


"We should tell them," Nico repeated. "About us, I mean. Percy, Annabeth, Piper and Jason, everybody," he said.  


Will couldn’t believe his ears. He had been thinking about this for a while now. He had been ok with honoring Nico’s wish not to tell anyone for a while, but it had been starting to feel like he was hiding from his friends. He would never tell them without Nico’s approval of course, but he was quickly tiring of pretending he and Nico weren’t together, and having to make excuses for where he had been all the time. He was too in love with Nico to do that for long. If it were up to him, he would have shouted it loud enough for all the gods of Olympus to hear by now. Will looked at Nico’s dark eyes, trying to ascertain his seriousness. He didn’t want to get his hopes up unless he was sure Nico actually meant what he said.  


"Are you serious?" Will asked after a minute. "You would do that?"  


Nico took a deep breath and said, "Yes. Because I know how much it means to you." His expression didn’t waver; he looked like he genuinely meant it. Then, as if he were afraid it would be difficult to get the words out, he said quickly, "and, because I want the world to know that we're together. That you're mine and I am yours."  


"You're mine and I’m yours," Will repeated his words. He had to admit they felt pretty good coming out of his mouth, and they had sounded even better coming from Nico. Nico was proud to be his. Slowly, Will grinned broadly. 

For the last few days, Will had been feeling like things couldn’t get any better than they already were and yet, Nico kept surprising him further a little bit each time. His heart filled with happiness and love, and he put his lips on Nico's. He loved this boy. He loved him more than he loved anything else in the world, and he tried to convey that to Nico through his kiss. Then he pulled back and quickly got out of bed, pulling on his clothes at random. He scooped up Nico’s clothes and tossed them to him in a rush. It was likely that other campers would be stirring now, and he wanted to get a head start. 

He was so excited to finally be able to tell them the truth, that he hadn’t noticed the nervous look on Nico’s face until the boy said, "Wait, I didn't mean like, right this second." His dark eyebrows were arched in alarm.  


"Too bad, boyfriend," Will teased, still grinning like a madman. "Come on, everyone will just be getting up about now." 

Nico grumbled a little, but he didn’t seem able to argue with Will’s jubilation. He put on his clothes and tried to flatten out his hair. It didn’t really do much good, but Will loved it just the way it was. He took Nico’s hand, feeling absolutely ecstatic. Then, he carefully led Nico out into the sunlit camp, leaving the Hades cabin behind. He was ready for the world to know that Nico di Angelo had taken his heart.


End file.
